Revelations printed in The Evening and the Morning Star, June 1832–June 1833

Generally, a follower of Jesus Christ, and in certain cases, one selected to lead the ministry. In the New Testament, Christ ordained twelve of his disciples as apostles. The Book of Mormon recounted that during his ministry to the Nephites, Christ similarly...

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and 1,000 others; in 1838 about 2,000 Saints and 1,200 others; in 1839 about 100 Saints and 1,500 others. Mormon missionaries visited township...

, who has
the care thereof, dispose of the land, that he
may be prepared in the coming spring, to
take his journey up unto the land of Zion

A specific location in Missouri; also a literal or figurative gathering of believers in Jesus Christ, characterized by adherence to ideals of harmony, equality, and purity. In JS’s earliest revelations “the cause of Zion” was used to broadly describe the ...

Nevertheless let him impart all the
money which he can impart, to be sent up
unto the land of Zion.

Behold these things are in his own
hands, let him do according to wisdom.

Verily I say, let him be ordained an
agent unto the disciples that shall tarry,
and let him be ordained

The conferral of power and authority; to appoint, decree, or set apart. Church members, primarily adults, were ordained to ecclesiastical offices and other responsibilities by the laying on of hands by those with the proper authority. Ordinations to priesthood...

unto this power;
and now speedily visit the churches, expounding
these things unto them, with my
servant Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

He that sendeth up treasures unto the
land of Zion, shall receive an inheritance in
this world, and his works shall follow him;
and also, a reward in the world to come;
yea, and blessed are the dead that die in the Lord from henceforth, when the Lord shall
come and old things shall pass away, and
all things become new, they shall rise from
the dead and shall not die, and shall
receive an inheritance before the Lord, in
the holy city, and he that liveth when the
Lord shall come, and have kept the faith,
blessed is he; nevertheless it is appointed to
him to die at the age of man:

Wherefore children shall grow up until
they become old, old men shall die; but
they shall not sleep in the dust, but they
shall be changed in the twinkling of an
eye:

Wherefore, for this cause preached the
apostles unto the world, the resurrection of
the dead:

These things are the things that ye
must look for, and speaking after the manner
of the Lord, they are now nigh at hand;
and in a time to come, even in the day of
the coming of the Son of man, and until
that hour, there will be foolish virgins
among the wise, and at that hour cometh
an entire separation of the righteous and
the wicked; and in that day will I send
mine angels, to pluck out the wicked, and
cast them into unquenchable fire.

And now behold, verily I say unto you,
I the Lord am not well pleased with my
servant Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

, he exalteth himself
in his heart, and received not counsel, but
grieved the Spirit:

Wherefore his writing is not axceptable
unto the Lord, and he shall make another;
and if the Lord receiveth it not; behold he
standeth no longer in the office which he
hath appointed him.

And again: verily I say unto you, let
those who desire in their hearts, in meekness,
to warn sinners to repentance, let them
be ordained unto this power; for this is a
day of warning, and not a day of many
words.

For I the Lord am not to be mocked in
the last days.

Behold I am from above, and my
power lieth beneath.

I am over all, and in all, and through
all, and searcheth all things:

And the days cometh that all things
shall be subject unto me.

Behold I am Alpha and Omega, even
Jesus Christ:

Wherefore let all men beware, how
they take my name in their lips:

For behold, verily I say, that many there
be who are under this condemnation; who
useth the name of the Lord and useth it in
vain, having not authority:

Wherefore let the church repent of
their sins, and I the Lord will own them,
otherwise they shall be cut off.

Remember that, that which cometh
from above is sacred, and must be spoken
with care, and by constraint of the Spirit
and in this there is no condemnation; and
ye receive the Spirit through prayer:

Generally, a follower of Jesus Christ, and in certain cases, one selected to lead the ministry. In the New Testament, Christ ordained twelve of his disciples as apostles. The Book of Mormon recounted that during his ministry to the Nephites, Christ similarly...

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and 1,000 others; in 1838 about 2,000 Saints and 1,200 others; in 1839 about 100 Saints and 1,500 others. Mormon missionaries visited township...

, who has
the care thereof, dispose of the land, that he
may be prepared in the coming spring, to
take his journey up unto the land of Zion

A specific location in Missouri; also a literal or figurative gathering of believers in Jesus Christ, characterized by adherence to ideals of harmony, equality, and purity. In JS’s earliest revelations “the cause of Zion” was used to broadly describe the ...

Nevertheless let him impart all the
money which he can impart, to be sent up
unto the land of Zion.

Behold these things are in his own
hands, let him do according to wisdom.

Verily I say, let him be ordained an
agent unto the disciples that shall tarry,
and let him be ordained

The conferral of power and authority; to appoint, decree, or set apart. Church members, primarily adults, were ordained to ecclesiastical offices and other responsibilities by the laying on of hands by those with the proper authority. Ordinations to priesthood...

unto this power;
and now speedily visit the churches, expounding
these things unto them, with my
servant Oliver [Cowdery]

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

He that sendeth up treasures unto the
land of Zion, shall receive an inheritance in
this world, and his works shall follow him;
and also, a reward in the world to come;
yea, and blessed are the dead that die in the Lord from henceforth, when the Lord shall
come and old things shall pass away, and
all things become new, they shall rise from
the dead and shall not die, and shall
receive an inheritance before the Lord, in
the holy city, and he that liveth when the
Lord shall come, and have kept the faith,
blessed is he; nevertheless it is appointed to
him to die at the age of man:

Wherefore children shall grow up until
they become old, old men shall die; but
they shall not sleep in the dust, but they
shall be changed in the twinkling of an
eye:

Wherefore, for this cause preached the
apostles unto the world, the resurrection of
the dead:

These things are the things that ye
must look for, and speaking after the manner
of the Lord, they are now nigh at hand;
and in a time to come, even in the day of
the coming of the Son of man, and until
that hour, there will be foolish virgins
among the wise, and at that hour cometh
an entire separation of the righteous and
the wicked; and in that day will I send
mine angels, to pluck out the wicked, and
cast them into unquenchable fire.

And now behold, verily I say unto you,
I the Lord am not well pleased with my
servant Sidney [Rigdon]

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

, he exalteth himself
in his heart, and received not counsel, but
grieved the Spirit:

Wherefore his writing is not axceptable
unto the Lord, and he shall make another;
and if the Lord receiveth it not; behold he
standeth no longer in the office which he
hath appointed him.

And again: verily I say unto you, let
those who desire in their hearts, in meekness,
to warn sinners to repentance, let them
be ordained unto this power; for this is a
day of warning, and not a day of many
words.

For I the Lord am not to be mocked in
the last days.

Behold I am from above, and my
power lieth beneath.

I am over all, and in all, and through
all, and searcheth all things:

And the days cometh that all things
shall be subject unto me.

Behold I am Alpha and Omega, even
Jesus Christ:

Wherefore let all men beware, how
they take my name in their lips:

For behold, verily I say, that many there
be who are under this condemnation; who
useth the name of the Lord and useth it in
vain, having not authority:

Wherefore let the church repent of
their sins, and I the Lord will own them,
otherwise they shall be cut off.

Remember that, that which cometh
from above is sacred, and must be spoken
with care, and by constraint of the Spirit
and in this there is no condemnation; and
ye receive the Spirit through prayer:

An ordinance in which an individual is immersed in water for the remission of sins. The Book of Mormon explained that those with necessary authority were to baptize individuals who had repented of their sins. Baptized individuals also received the gift of...

Located twelve miles from western Missouri border. Permanently settled, platted, and designated county seat, 1827. Hub for steamboat travel on Missouri River. Point of departure for Santa Fe Trail. Population in 1831 about 300. Mormon population by summer...

, Missouri, “and be established as a printer unto the
church.” Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

In early 1832, Phelps and his associates in Independence
began work on the church’s first newspaper, The Evening and the Morning Star. Because of
the difficulty of getting paper and other supplies to Independence, however, months passed
before the first issue of the newspaper was printed in June 1832.

The newspaper’s prospectus announced that it would, in part, “be devoted to the revelations
of God as made known to his servants by the Holy Ghost

A right or privilege bestowed through the confirmation ordinance. Individuals were confirmed members of the church and received the gift of the Holy Ghost through the laying on of hands. The Book of Mormon explained that remission of sins requires not only...

the Star was the first
official periodical of the church to print them. As the church’s only periodical at the time,
the Star also published counsel to church members, local and world news, editorials,
hymns, and letters from missionaries. The Star regularly published general announcements
to missionaries serving throughout the country and letters from church members in other
states, evidencing that its circulation reached well beyond Independence

Located twelve miles from western Missouri border. Permanently settled, platted, and designated county seat, 1827. Hub for steamboat travel on Missouri River. Point of departure for Santa Fe Trail. Population in 1831 about 300. Mormon population by summer...

See, for example, Notice, The Evening and the Morning Star, Aug. 1832, [7]; “Letters,” The Evening
and the Morning Star, Nov. 1832, [4]; “Extract” and “Letters,” The Evening and the Morning Star, Jan. 1833,
[7]; and “Extracts of Letters from the Elders Abroad,” The Evening and the Morning Star, Feb. 1833, [5]–[6].
JS, in a November 1832 letter to Phelps, added ten new subscribers to the Star, nine from Guyandotte,
Virginia (now West Virginia), and one from Wooster Township, Ohio. (JS, Kirtland, OH, to William W.
Phelps, [Independence, MO], 27 Nov. 1832, in JS Letterbook 1, pp. 1–4.)

The corporate name of the church’s printing establishment in Independence, Missouri. The company included church printer William W. Phelps and likely John Whitmer and Oliver Cowdery, who were appointed by the Literary Firm to assist Phelps in reviewing and...

The branch of the United Firm responsible for church publications. In November 1831, a revelation appointed JS, Martin Harris, Oliver Cowdery, John Whitmer, Sidney Rigdon, and William W. Phelps as “stewards over the revelations & commandments.” In March 1832...

Located twelve miles from western Missouri border. Permanently settled, platted, and designated county seat, 1827. Hub for steamboat travel on Missouri River. Point of departure for Santa Fe Trail. Population in 1831 about 300. Mormon population by summer...

The only known surviving copy of the Upper Missouri Advertiser—no. 3, dated 11 July 1832—is
located at the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, MA.

In July 1833, when religious and political tensions between the Mormons and their neighbors had already created a tinderbox
environment, an article titled “Free People of Color” appeared in The Evening and the
Morning Star, quoting from Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Mormon missionaries...

statutes respecting the immigration of free persons of
African descent. Many Missourians, largely sympathetic to the practice of slavery, interpreted
the article as an attempt to invite free black people to settle in Missouri and were
outraged.7

“Free People of Color,” The Evening and the Morning Star, July 1833, 109; “To His Excellency, Daniel
Dunklin,” The Evening and the Morning Star, Dec. 1833, 114–115.

Vigilantes, demanding removal of Latter-day Saints from Jackson County, Missouri, destroyed printing office and tarred and feathered Edward Partridge and Charles Allen, Independence, Jackson County, Missouri; a few dozen copies of unfinished Book of Commandments...

JS revelations, dated 20 July and 1 Aug. 1831, directed establishment of LDS church’s first printing office in Independence, Missouri. Dedicated by Bishop Edward Partridge, 29 May 1832. Located on Lot 76, on Liberty Street just south of courthouse square....

A firm established by the United Firm on 11 September 1833 to print newspapers in Kirtland, Ohio. In December 1833, F. G. Williams & Co. resumed the interrupted printing of the church newspaper The Evening and the Morning Star. After the United Firm was reorganized...

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and 1,000 others; in 1838 about 2,000 Saints and 1,200 others; in 1839 about 100 Saints and 1,500 others. Mormon missionaries visited township...

, Ohio, for
the purpose of printing church materials, and Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

Located in northeast region of U.S. Area settled by Dutch traders, 1620s; later governed by Britain, 1664–1776. Admitted to U.S. as state, 1788. Population in 1810 about 1,000,000; in 1820 about 1,400,000; in 1830 about 1,900,000; and in 1840 about 2,400,...

to
purchase a printing press and type. Upon his return, Cowdery resumed printing the Star
in Kirtland from January until September 1834. Beginning in October 1834, the Latter Day
Saints’ Messenger and Advocate succeeded the Star as the official church periodical.

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Mormon missionaries...

, the paper printed nineteen
full and seven partial revelation texts. Only two issues of the Missouri newspaper did
not contain featured revelations: the April 1833 issue and the July 1833 issue, which was the
final issue printed in Missouri. As in the Book of Commandments and the first edition
of the Doctrine and Covenants (1835), little, if any, introduction or commentary accompanied
the featured revelations. In addition to publishing the revelations as stand-alone
pieces, The Evening and the Morning Star often published articles that quoted from the
revelations—both from those printed as featured documents in the paper and from those
that had not been published therein. Well before the Book of Commandments was expected
to be completed, the editors of the Star advised readers to “search the revelations
which we publish,” an admonition that presumed that the Latter-day Saints had access to
earlier issues.9

“To the Honorable Men of the World,” The Evening and the Morning Star, Aug. 1832, [6].

Located twelve miles from western Missouri border. Permanently settled, platted, and designated county seat, 1827. Hub for steamboat travel on Missouri River. Point of departure for Santa Fe Trail. Population in 1831 about 300. Mormon population by summer...

, as well as those scattered around the
country, the Star became the most accessible source for JS’s revelatory texts.

The revelations published in The Evening and the Morning Star appear to have been
selected for their importance. Many of the published revelations addressed topics relating
to church government, such as the roles of specific church officers,10

See, for example, Articles and Covenants, ca. Apr. 1830, in “The Articles and Covenants of the
Church of Christ,” The Evening and the Morning Star, June 1832, [1], and June 1833, 97–98 [D&C 20];
Revelation, 1 Nov. 1831–A, in “A Revelation, Given November 1831,” The Evening and the Morning Star,Oct. 1832, [3] [D&C 68]; and Revelation, 4 Dec. 1831, in “A Revelation Given December 4, 1831,” The
Evening and the Morning Star,Dec. 1832, [5]–[6] [D&C 72].

See, for example, Revelation, 9 and 23 Feb. 1831, in “Extract from the Laws for the Government of
the Church of Christ” and “Items of Law for the Government of the Church of Christ,” The Evening and
the Morning Star,July 1832, [1], and Oct. 1832, [2] [D&C 42:11–93].

Primarily referred to the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, or Communion, as opposed to other religious sacraments. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church directed “that the church meet together often to partake of bread and wine in remembrance of the Lord...

Revelations that were given
to specific individuals providing counsel or commandment

Generally, a divine mandate that church members were expected to obey; more specifically, a text dictated by JS in the first-person voice of Deity that served to communicate knowledge and instruction to JS and his followers. Occasionally, other inspired texts...

French explored area, 1669. British took possession following French and Indian War, 1763. Ceded to U.S., 1783. First permanent white settlement established, 1788. Northeastern portion maintained as part of Connecticut, 1786, and called Connecticut Western...

, no revelations were included in the ten issues of the newspaper published
there.

The table that follows lists each of the revelatory
items printed in the Star and its reprint, along with its bibliographic information. See Revelations Printed in The Evening and the Morning Star for a side-by-side comparison of the revelations printed in the Star and its reprint.

Key to column titles

Vol:Issue:

Volume and issue number

Star Print Date:

Month in which the item was printed in The Evening and the Morning Star

Star Pages:

Pages on which the item was printed in The Evening and the Morning Star

Reprint Print Date:

Month in which the item was printed in Evening and Morning Star

Reprint Pages:

Pages on which the item was printed in Evening and Morning Star

Date:

Date of item, followed by section number in Doctrine and Covenants, 1981 edition, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Revelations published in The Evening and the Morning Star (Independence

Located twelve miles from western Missouri border. Permanently settled, platted, and designated county seat, 1827. Hub for steamboat travel on Missouri River. Point of departure for Santa Fe Trail. Population in 1831 about 300. Mormon population by summer...

. The copy used for this transcription is currently part
of a bound volume held at CHL; includes marginalia, archival notations, stamps, and bookplates.

The initial issues of The Evening and the Morning Star present revelations prominently on the first
or second page of the newspaper. Beginning with the November 1832 issue, however, revelations were
placed near the end of each issue. Each issue comprises four leaves (eight pages) that measure
12½ × 9⅞ inches (32 × 25 cm). Each page is set in two columns.

The volume used for this transcription
was donated to the Salt Lake Temple by Lycurgus A. Wilson on 8 September 1894, according to a bookplate
on the inside front cover of the volume. It was transferred to the library of the Church Historian’s
Office sometime before 1923.1